The first lot of good news is that I came across the two Cosgrove Hall Discworld cartoons on DVD in a shop today that specialises in hard-to-get DVDs (like those from the UK or the US).

The bad news? The DVDs were from Germany, and I didn't discover this until after I paid.

The second lot of good news? The English soundtracks are still present on the DVD as an option.

And it's playable on a Region 4 DVD player, even though it said Region 2 on the back. I still have a player that can play Region 2 DVDs, but this helps.

So, let's start a discussion about the Cosgrove Hall adaptations. I think it was their version of Soul Music that actually got me onto Discworld in the first place. Either that, or a demo of Discworld II: Missing, Presumed...? that came free with my PlayStation when I was a teenager.

One thing they undeniably got right was casting Christopher Lee as Death. I know that he played Death in The Colour of Magic, but Cosgrove Hall did it first.

They aren't bad, for the time. And I've had a soft spot for Cosgrove Hall since I learned they made Danger Mouse and Victor and Hugo, not to mention that later, they did the Doctor Who animations Scream of the Shalka and The Infinite Quest, along with the reconstructions of episodes 1 and 4 of The Invasion.

The main issue I have with the Cosgrove Hall Discworld stuff is the design. Some of the characters don't look quite right. I'm not sure that I viewed Lord Felmet as a more competent and paranoid version of the original Blackadder, and both Nobby and Colon are FUBAR.

Quatermass wrote:The main issue I have with the Cosgrove Hall Discworld stuff is the design. Some of the characters don't look quite right. I'm not sure that I viewed Lord Felmet as a more competent and paranoid version of the original Blackadder, and both Nobby and Colon are FUBAR.

I do agree, that the Colon & Nobby that appear in Soul Music are definitely /not/ the Colon & Nobby familiar to us from the books, but I think I heard somewhere (perhaps the DVD extras?) that they are visually based on Laurel and Hardy. Considering they're only in a scene or two in the entire thing, I can forgive that.

To be honest, I haven't watched either for a while, but I do think they are adapted rather well, even if the visual style isn't fantastic. And I do love the music from Soul Music, the CD is great.

Nullus Anxietas V - The Australian Discworld Convention10-12 April 2015Novotel Parramatta, New South Wales, Australiahttp://ausdwcon.org

Quatermass wrote:The main issue I have with the Cosgrove Hall Discworld stuff is the design. Some of the characters don't look quite right. I'm not sure that I viewed Lord Felmet as a more competent and paranoid version of the original Blackadder, and both Nobby and Colon are FUBAR.

I do agree, that the Colon & Nobby that appear in Soul Music are definitely /not/ the Colon & Nobby familiar to us from the books, but I think I heard somewhere (perhaps the DVD extras?) that they are visually based on Laurel and Hardy. Considering they're only in a scene or two in the entire thing, I can forgive that.

To be honest, I haven't watched either for a while, but I do think they are adapted rather well, even if the visual style isn't fantastic. And I do love the music from Soul Music, the CD is great.

I love. love, LOVE the music - I really thought that Neil Innes was involved in the parodies of famous bands and was surprised to find that he wasn't. Favourite track: - The Touchstone. The entire prog-rock era in under four minutes!

"If there is any kind of supreme being it is up to all of us to become its moral superior."

How many are there? The only ones I've seen are Wyrd Sisters and Soul Music. Can't say I was overly impressed with either. Even though they were dutiful adaptations, the pacing was slow, and the animation bargain basement.

Then again, I can't say that the only 'live action' adaptation (Hogfather) is all that much better. (Still haven't seen Going Postal yet).

I have them on VHS and I think I also have them on DVD but I'm not sure. After having seen the live-action shows, I find it very hard to watch the Cosgrove Hall cartoons. On the other hand, what I do like very much is the CD with the full versions of the songs, uninterrupted by dialogue.